I've got a nearly 2 year old HP pavillion. Works great for what i need it for - playing WoW, doing schoolwork, browsing the intarweb. It was about 1500 bucks when i got it.

I guess my recommendation depends on what you need it for. If it's for toting around between class and writing notes on, i'd seriously consider an Acer. you don't need more power, they're a bit cheaper, and generally pretty small.

Otherwise, i found that brand doesn't matter so much as what's in the machine. If you wanna play games on it, make sure it has a real graphics card, for example.

But considering what you were using your old one for, and since it got stolen and you probably don't want to spend too much, i'd go with an Acer.